Freight-car door.



J. M. BARROW.

FREiGHT CAR DOOR: APPLICATION FILED APR. 12. 1 917.

1,%36,@40@ Patented Aug. 7, 1917 JAMES M. BARROW, OF BIENVILLE, LOUISIANA.

FREIGHT-CAR, DOOR.

Application filed April 12, 1917.

b all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JAMES M. BARROW, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bienville, in the parish of Bienville, State of Louisiana, have invented a new and useful Freight-Car Door; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to the art of rolling stock, and particularly to an improved auxiliary sectional door for freight cars, and one of the objects of the invention is to provide a door of this kind having improved features of construction.

It has been found that in shipping freight, the same becomes so jolted or jarred as to become ammed against the inner surface of the usual freight car door, bulging the door outwardly, whereby the hangers of the door are strained and under considerable tension, and furthermore, the door becomes so bulged and jammed as to render itdiflicult to open the same.

Therefore, the aim of this invention is to provide a simple and practical auxiliary car door, to act as a buffer for the freight, thereby relieving the strain from the main door of the car.

A further object of the invention is to provide an auxiliary car door consisting of two sections, in combination with means to lock the two sections of the door with the j amb of the door opening, which means also supports the lower section in an open position when unloading the car.

In practical fields, the details of construction may necessitate alterations falling within the scope of what is claimed.

The invention comprises further features and combination of parts, as hereinafter set forth, shown in the drawings, and claimed.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a view in perspective of the improved auxiliary door as applied to a freight car.

Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of a portion of the car with the auxiliary door applied.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 33 of Fig. 2, showing the sections folded and held in folded open positions.

Referring more especially to the drawings, 1 designates a conventional form of freight car, which is provided with the usual Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. *7, 191.7.

Serial No. 161,471.

door opening 2, the upper and lower rails 3 which are engaged by the hangers a of the main car door 5. The side jambs of the door opening are provided with transverse grooves 6, 7 and S, the grooves of one side jamb are directly opposite the grooves of the opposite side jamb. The upper and lower grooves 6 and 8 are provided with adjoining downwardly extending grooves 9 and 10. The intermediate grooves 7 are provided with adjoining downwardly and upwardly extending grooves or recesses 11 and 12. The auxiliary door comprises two sections 13 and 14:, each of which is constructed of transverse slats 15. The slats 15 of the upper section are secured together by the angle bars 16, while the slats of the lower section are secured together by the angle bars 17. The upper section 13 of the auxiliary door is suspended from the upper portion of the door opening 2 by means of the hinges 18. The angle bars 16 and 17 have adjacent extensions, through which a rod 19 axially extends, thereby pivotally uniting the two sections of the door. This rod has both its ends terminating in crank extensions 20, to coiiperate with the grooves 7 in the manner to be hereinafter stated. The rod 19 has a central crank 21. Mounted in the lower parts of the bars 17 is a rocking rod 22 having end cranks 23 to cooperate with the grooves 6 and 8, as hereinafter stated, and also provided with an intermediate crank 24. A link 25 connects the two cranks 21 and 21. A lever 26 is pivoted at 27 to the lateral flange of the central angle bar of the lower section. This lever 26, a short distance from the pivot 27, say for instance, equal to each of said cranks 21 and 24, is pivoted at 28 to the link 25, so that when said lever is tilted downwardly, at the time the two sections are closed, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the cranks 20 and 23 will engage the grooves 11 and 10, respectively, thereby holding the auxiliary door closed, in order that said door will act as a buffer, to prevent the freight from jarring against the main door 5, which would otherwise occur, should the auxiliary door not be used. To open the auxiliary door, the lever 26 may be moved outwardly and upwardly, which would impart movement to the link thereby rocking the rods 19 and 22, consequently moving the cranks 20 and 23 from engagement with the recesses or grooves 11 and 10, in which case the lower section may be moved outwardly and upwardly. WVhen so moving the lower section outwardly and upwardly, it is the aim to hold the rod 19 in position so that its crank 20 will enter the grooves or recesses 12, then by continuing moving the lower section pivotally upwardly and held temporarily in the dotted line position at, until a portion of the freight of the car is removed. After removing some of the freight, the lower section is moved down, keeping the lever 26 adjacent thereto, in order to cause the cranks 20 to disengage the grooves 12, then the upper section of the door may be moved inwardly, and at the same time the lower section outwardly and upwardly until the cranks 23 will enter the grooves 6, sufficiently, whereby the cranks 23 may be dropped into the grooves 9, thereby holding the two sections of the auxiliary door sufficiently open, as shown in Fig. 3.

The invention having been set forth, what is claimed as new and useful, is

1. An auxiliary car door for freight cars, comprising in combination with a door opening, said door consisting of upper and lower hingedly united sections, the upper section having hinged connections with the top of the door opening, the hinged connections between the two sections consisting of a rod having end cranks, a second rod mounted in bearings of the lower end of the lower section and having end cranks, the side jambs of the door opening having upper and lower and intermediate pockets or grooves, and means for rocking the two rods simultaneously whereby the end cranks of both rods may be thrown into engagement with the lower grooves and the intermediate grooves.

2. In an auxiliary car door for freight cars, comprising in combination with a door opening, said door consisting of upper and lower hingedly united sections, the upper section having hinged connections with the top of the door opening, the hinged connections between the two sections consisting of a rod having end cranks, a second rod mounted in bearings of the lower end of the lower section and having end cranks, the side jambs of the door opening having upper and lower and intermediate pockets or grooves, and means for rocking the two rods simultaneously whereby the end cranks of both rods may be thrown into engagement with the lower grooves and the intermediate grooves, said means comprising central cranks on said rods, a link connecting said central cranks, a lever pivoted to the lower section and in turn pivoted to said links, to rock said rod, the jambs of the door opening having grooves to permit the end cranks of the rods to enter the first grooves, the first uppermost groove designed to receive the end cranks of the second rod to hold the two sections in folded open positions.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JAMES M. BARROW.

Witnesses:

W. W. POOLE, W. A. COLE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

